More Than We Are Worth
by Elenya Aurelin
Summary: Okee... I really have no idea how to explain this. It's... I don't know what it is. Has a summary in there. BTW, there isn't a Disclaimer, but it's not mine anyway, you know that.
1. Default Chapter

A/N This fic was inspired by Ari Munami's wonderful Lightning Letters. It was the idea of a textbook-style fic that got me really interested, and I decided to write a (Sort of) essay on Draco Malfoy and his Death Eater upbringing. I did a helluvalotta research for this fic, so I'm hoping it'll be good. It's set a long way in the future, far enough that they have rebuilt themselves completely, but not so far that the heroism of those killed is forgotten. It's mainly about the second rising of Voldemort, in which supporters of the Light were few, until finally Voldemort was defeated around 2010.  
  
~*~*~ MORE THAN WE ARE WORTH ~*~*~  
  
Harry Potter, the long-dead hero of the Wizarding World. Many books have been written about the Boy-Who-Lived and his Light contemporaries, but little has been said about those on the other side of the fence, the Deatheaters, minions of Lord Voldemort.  
  
It is widely known that the Dark Lord's henchmen were, in all reality, pure evil. Thousands of muggles, muggle borns, and even those who simply opposed his ideas were murdered by the white masked terrorists. They pillaged, raped, and murdered indiscreetly, and at the height of their power had completely eradicated some parts of the Wizarding World. Most notably, they destroyed Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, killing many teachers and even young students.  
  
But who were these Deatheaters? Madmen plucked from the streets? No, of course not. Someone as idealistic as Voldemort would never stoop to such levels. These men and women were hand picked from among wizarding society's finest. Many of these young, rich socialites were eager for the power and money Voldemort offered, and those more moralistic ones were placed under the Imperious Curse, a mind controlling spell.  
  
Those accepted into the ranks were branded with the Dark Mark (See Open Eyes and Shining Skies by E. Macmillan for a picture). If you had been accepted willingly, then you were forced to make sure that your offspring followed in your footsteps. These Deatheaters-in-Practice were subjected to a strict up-bringing, and were taught Dark Arts (See Effects of Evil, N. MacDonald) from an early age. Their 'morals', which would be extremely important in later life, were ingrained into their mind from birth.  
  
A classic example of these harsh methods of childcare is Draco Thomas Malfoy, son to Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy, extremely rich and influential Deatheaters. Despite being born to Inner Circle Deatheaters, Draco would play a key role in the Downfall of Voldemort. Yet where is his name in the History Books?  
  
Finding little work on this lost soldier, I have taken it upon myself to write an accurate account of the life of Draco Malfoy, the forgotten Hero.  
  
~*~*~  
  
On September 1st, 1980, Draco Thomas Malfoy was born at home to Lucius and Narcissa. His birth was, even in his own household, over shadowed by the recent fall of the Dark Lord. Despite being blessed with a son, the next few days were extremely traumatic for Lucius and Narcissa, both waiting for their inevitable arrest. Narcissa was never actually charged, though Lucius was arrested. He was later released after claiming to have been under the influence of the Imperious Curse, and a lack of evidence to prove other wise.  
  
Despite these courtroom lies, Lucius remained internally loyal to Voldemort, and Draco was brought up in true Deatheater fashion. He was not allowed to communicate with anyone but those Lucius deemed fit, which was a select few former Deatheater's children. Those visiting the Manor have written accounts of meeting "That charming Malfoy child,". He is also mentioned in the totally intact Diary of A Deatheater, the complete diary of Mrs Lestrange, and famed Deatheater. On July 5th, 1987, she writes:  
  
"Today, I visited Malfoy Manor. I have never before seen their young son, Draco, and it was a pleasant surprise to be greeted by him. He looks very like his Father, but has none of Lucius' arrogance. I am sure, though, that Lucius will make sure he has arrogance by the time he is a young man. Lucius will spoil that boy. Draco is quite charming now, and very shy. He offered to take my coat for me, and was completely lost in the fur for a good two minutes until a house-elf helped him out. He then disappeared until later that night, when he came down holding on to Narcissa as if for dear life. This seemed to displease Lucius, and the boy was sent out again soon after. It was a shame, ad I greatly desired to talk to him a little more..."  
  
She then proceeds to describe what happened after Draco left, but it is of little interest to the tale I am telling. As you can see from this small passage, Lucius Malfoy was never completely satisfied with his son, and Draco was never deemed fit to be his son. If Draco ever displeased his father in public, he was punished severely. The scars he received were still evident in later life, both mentally and physically.  
  
Although he was brought up to hate muggles and muggle borns, Draco was never wholeheartedly a deatheater, despite his public façade. The view he was 'evil' only circulated when he began Hogwarts, at age 11. He was in the same year as Harry Potter, and reportedly a bitter rival. It is rumoured that they met before Hogwarts, but where or when is unknown, and there is no evidence to support this.  
  
Needless to say, Draco was sorted in Slytherin, as his father had been. During his first year, Draco Malfoy did not particularly distinguish himself in any way, despite good marks and reasonable talent in Potions. He did, however, forge a friendship with his House Master, Severus Snape, that would last a lifetime, despite Lucius Malfoy's dislike of the man.  
  
In his second year, Draco made the House Team. He played the position of seeker, and in a broken pensieve there is a slightly blurred image of him catching the snitch in a match against another house, Ravenclaw. Also, scrawled on the underside of a bed found in the wreckage of Hogwarts is: "Yr2, Will beat Potter, DM." believed to be written by him. Also, we discovered in a school log, he took part in a duelling club, and came very close to defeating Harry Potter in a duel, though this was overshadowed by Harry discovering he was a parseltongue, and commanding the snake Draco conjured to stop terrorising an unknown student.  
  
Draco's third year was the most eventful yet, with him being attacked by a Hippogriff. Reportedly, his arm was hurt for at least three weeks, as the school nurse has painkiller prescription written down for him in her log. Also that year, he inadvertently brought out an uncommonly good patronus ablility in Harry, though it is unkown how, only that he received a month's detentions for doing so, along with a seventh year, and two other names, which are unreadable with age.  
  
In the next year, there are no records of him, except him being quoted in a popular magazine of the time, Witch Weekly. He is merely badmouthing Harry, and there is nothing of real interest, though the article reportedly caused scandal back then.  
  
Draco's fifth year, however, was his most eventful ever. Over the previous summer, his Deatheater initiation had taken place, a ceremony shrouded in secrecy, which nothing at all is known about, except that it was extremely painful. The ceremony changed Draco forever. He was extremely tormented, and withdrew into himself. His marks fell, and anti-depressants were issued from the Hospital Wing weekly. He quit quidditch, and often went missing for weeks at a time. Lucius was involved with several muggles massacres, and it is believed that Draco, either willingly or not, participated in at least two of these. It was Christmas Day when the school was destroyed, though Draco (And fortunately many others) were not there at the time. It was then, it is believed, that he became a spy for Dumbledore.  
  
Becoming a spy cannot have been an easy decision, though it is believed he was heavily influenced by one Severus Snape. He gave much information to the Light, and was seemingly not suspected of any non-deatheater activity within the ranks. In the final battle, it was Draco Malfoy who took down all the protection charms surrounding the Deatheater HQ, at massive personal expense. He also found jobs within the headquarters for infiltrating spies, and eventually made sure that twenty trained aurors were Voldemort's personal guard.  
  
However, on his thirtieth birthday (Incidentally the day of the final Deatheater's execution) Draco Thomas Malfoy was found dead in his home, with "LIVE AND YET DIE" scrawled upon the wall. Believed the work of vigilantes, the case was closed quickly, as none had the heart to look into the death of an ex deatheater, despite the fact he had been proved innocent with undeniable evidence.  
  
Very few attended his funeral, though many war heroes were there. Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and Hermione Granger, most notably. In an interview soon after, one Ronald Weasley states:  
  
"I know what Dumbledore says, I've seen the evidence, but once a Deatheater, always a Deatheater. Think of those he killed while 'helping' us!" causing a mass dislike for the deceased Draco.  
  
He is, however, spoken favourably of in 'Memoirs of A Lost Soul' by the aforementioned H Granger. She says,  
  
"I do agree with Ron, Draco Malfoy did many many terrible things, but he did so much for the Order, and it was such a great risk that I can feel nothing but admiration for the man...I remember in Hogwarts I used to hate him so... There was Public Draco, and Real Draco, and yet I loved them both..."  
  
From this last sentence, it is assumed Draco and Hermione were lovers. However, on her 34th birthday, Hermione married one George Weasley, who we know little of. So soon? One believes that Draco formed a close friendship with Hermione, but they were not lovers. Draco was, however, romantically involved with someone, though we don't know who. All we have is a note, in beautiful flowing script, written a while before he died, saying:  
  
"The sun has risen again. It looks like you, a burst of beauty and delight. Yet you exceed it forever. I will let them all know so soon, and yet first the sun must rise again. It shall look like you tomorrow I hope, and if not, I shall see you in my heart,"  
  
I hate to end proving only Draco's slightly lacking attempts at romance, but the story of his life ends here, with a badly written love note, and a long unsolved mystery. I would hope to find who his mystery love was, or indeed who killed him, but there is no more evidence of his existence. When he died, he was gone. Gone, and forgotten. Now, at least, I have found him.  
  
~*~*~  
  
A/N End sucked... Oh well... Please review! 


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Goes for all chapters. It's not mine, k?  
  
A/N I just enjoyed writing the last chapter, so I *had* to continue this!  
  
~*~*~ CHAPTER 2 ~*~*~  
  
Since my last writing, much has been discovered in a ancient Pensieve. Found completely intact near the ruins of Hogwarts, it has Ronald Weasley written on the side. It is a very exciting discovery for the Wizarding world, as it shows insight into the life of an extremely famous member of the Order, and artwork and spells lost during Voldemort's second rising are depicted graphically, as he used it to record lessons, we believe. However, the part of it which most interested me is an encounter with the 12yr old Draco Malfoy. Apparently, Draco was rather a nasty piece of work during his first few years at Hogwarts, as this demonstrates.  
  
In this encounter, he insults Hermione Granger, who we now know he would form a close friendship with in later life. Enraged by this, Ronald attempts to hex him with a currently unidentifiable spell. The spell, however, backfires, and Ron begins to retch. We see Draco, laughing heartily, then the scene switches to another, more mundane aspect of Hogwarts life.  
  
Then, in another part of the pensieve, we see a haggard looking, 30 year old Draco celebrating with Ronald, Hermione and Harry Potter. He looks very different from the earlier pictures we have of him, and very tired and anxious. We believe now, that Draco knew someone was out to get him, as all through this otherwise happy scene, he casts wild glances around the room. Other than this, he does not again appear in the pensieve.  
  
This raises another question. If Draco did know someone was planning his death, why did he not confide in anyone? Or if he did, why is there no record of him doing so? Was the Deatheater prejudice then so bad that no one would accept even a proven Light Spy? Did it have anything to do with this mystery lover he seemingly adored?  
  
Here, I plan to answer these questions. I looked up many of the books ex- Hogwartians and survivors of the War had written, and found a wealth of information in one A. Pucey's book on Pre-War Hogwarts. This book is often shunted aside by many historians due to the fact that Pucey was in Slytherin, despite the fact he fought for the Light openly right through the War.  
  
Pucey claims that in Slytherin he was something of an outcast due to his refusal at his initiation ceremony. He found an unlikely friend in Draco Malfoy, who up until that point Pucey had believed to be "Voldemort II". Pucey saw a side of Draco few ever did. He saw the inner torment that drove Draco into the ranks of Voldemort, but never knew why he became a spy for the Light.  
  
Only once does Pucey mention Draco's frequent disappearances, saying:  
  
"Once or twice a week, Malfoy slipped away. I was sure it was not to meet Voldemort, as then half of Slytherin would be gone. I do believe it was to meet some girl or other. Simply rampant testosterone."  
  
Pucey leaves it there, much to my disappointment. However, he more than makes up for that with his stolen entry from Draco's diary:  
  
"I stole this from Draco when we were fifteen, hoping it might give me a clue as to who he was seeing all the time. All it did was show me the horror and torment he keeps inside. I wished I had not read it, for I would not swap all his riches and good looks if that haunted soul did come with it.  
  
"And I can hear you scream. I hear it. Inside your head. Because when you're screaming I'm screaming. We're both screaming for different reasons, and you don't know I'm screaming, and I'm not screaming because you are.  
  
But we scream. And it burns. You know it does. In your head it's burning, like ice does when your hands are warm.  
  
That's what life is, isn't it? Screaming, I mean.  
  
Some of us don't admit when we scream, it just happens. Something never to be spoken or thought of again. But I can tell. When people are screaming, I know they are. Especially you.  
  
It's not because you're special. No one's special, despite what people say. We're all different, granted, but we're so very very similar too. We all scream.  
  
Everyone's screaming. Not all the time, because it'd get out of hand then. But we scream.  
  
I scream for lots of reasons. I scream all the time. I do. Don't think I'm lying. I have no reason to. But I have reason to scream.  
  
I suppose everyone has a reason to scream, really. Some people have more reasons than others. And those people would imagine that I have no reason to scream.  
  
See, that's what makes me scream. I'm so normal. Like everyone else. I just need whitewashed walls now. I'll be normal in years to come, as well.  
  
You know something? That's what makes me different. The normalness. Oh yes, there are people more normal than me. But no one hovers quite here, in this grey.  
  
Grey. Life is grey, do you know? No black. No white. Grey. Lots and lots of grey.  
  
And screaming. Grey people screaming in their heads because it hurts and hurts and it won't stop and it kills you and then.  
  
Then you get up, and go and finish what you had to do, and you were putting off. And some people cry then. Like me.  
  
I want to scream. Really. But I'd try and I wouldn't be able to. Like when I open my mouth to give cheek to teachers. I close it again. Or when I give Weasel a dig. I pull my punches.  
  
Because I'm grey. Not black. Not white. Screaming. And grey."  
  
We can only wonder at what other thoughts were circulating within his corrupt mind. This simple passage says a lot about Draco and his beliefs. Much of it centres around his madness, the screaming inside his head. We also see that he believes his is different, something obviously ingrained by the never satisfied Lucius Malfoy. Also, he states that everything is grey, demonstrating that he believes that nothing is simple, nothing is black, nothing is white.  
  
He was seemingly always neutral, never believing anything really, because it was all 'grey'. It seems that he saw no logic in the Deatheater morals, or particularly even the Light morals. This person he speaks of, though. She or he seems to have been just as tormented as Draco, so tormented that she didn't notice anything else, so trapped was she in her own personal hell.  
  
I believe that this is Draco's mystery lover. She must've been on the side of the Light, or Draco would not have changed sides. However, as I previously thought, they were not actually together as that point, it seems. He says that she didn't know he was screaming, so obviously this was a little unrequited love. So where, exactly, was Draco going on his nightly wanderings?  
  
Perhaps, like a shadow, trailing his object of affections? No, this does not seem like the Draco we have seen so far. But then, his haunted writings were little like the Draco I find so interesting. He is quite an enigma.  
  
Anyway, so far I have failed to answer any of the questions I put forward. Looking at the little evidence we have, I believe Draco knew his death was being plotted. At first glance it seems to be a Deatheater getting a final revenge on the traitor. This would be the most likely scenario, if all the ex-deatheaters had not been killed, the last one, as I said before, on the very day of Draco's death. So was it a drastically uninformed member of the order, trying to get revenge on a 'lying Deatheater turncoat' as he was once described in the seemingly popular Witch Weekly.  
  
I believe this is a far more accurate possibility. During the war, and for several centuries after, prejudice against those connected even most remotely with anything Dark was high. Simply having been in Slytherin was enough to make you a complete social outcast, as Pucey mentions in his book.  
  
This gave me a small lead. There were several anti-deatheater vigilante groups formed after the War. The most violent, The Remembered, actually wrote a book, graphically describing the torture of several Deatheaters they caught in the six months after the War and before the last formal execution. Naturally, the book was regarded as an insult to the literary community, and was thrown aside hastily.  
  
However, in an old Gringotts vault, (All of which are now open, displaying ancient wizarding artefacts) I came across said book, titled innocently enough 'The Fall of Evil'. After reading it, in all it's distasteful glory, I discovered, written at the back: Live And Yet Die, SAF.  
  
Who SAF is, or was, is currently unknown, but it is almost definite proof that Draco was killed by a vigilante group.  
  
So far, I have answered only answered two of my questions. A vigilante group killed Draco Malfoy because of his Dark Connections. So that's who killed him and why he was killed.  
  
However, I also set out to find if he knew of this plot. There were many questions unanswered, and I decided to start by looking at where Draco grew up. I journeyed to Malfoy Manor.  
  
Today, Malfoy Manor retains much of it's former glory, except for the badly damaged West Wing. It is a wonder that there are so few visitors, as Malfoy Manor is now open to the public. But that was not the part I wanted to see. There was rumour, several centuries ago, of Draco Malfoy's secret room. I intended to find it. After obtaining special permission, I combed the house for any clue of this room. I found nothing of the sort, but during my search, a scrap piece of parchment in the attic caught my eye. It was written in an unfamiliar flowing script, but it was what it said that caught my eye:  
  
I'm going to die today.  
  
There was no date, or name, so there was no way to link it to Draco. However, I took it to magical researchers, who performed a complex charm to decipher who wrote it. I was proved, without a doubt, right.  
  
Enough of death. Who was Draco's mystery lover? This has plagued me since I began writing. I may have answered all of my other questions, but this one remained. So far I knew nothing of her, (or even him), other than that she was tormented by inner demons, was not a school friend of Draco's (although she did attend at the same time as him), worked for the Light (openly I assume), and died after promising her that they would go public with their relationship.  
  
I began my search by looking at the list of all members of the Order. It was too many, and we had no history of many of those mentioned. So where was I to begin? I spent months moping around, and had abandoned the rest of this tale, when, in a small bookstore in Hogsmeade, I found a picture of Draco. It was a brilliant picture, one of very few left undamaged after the war, but what was most interesting was the writing on the back.  
  
'I love you in this picture. When you meet me at the Three Broomsticks, wear that shirt. And look in Snuffle's cave, there is a present for you!'  
  
It was not signed. I was, however, intrigued. Who was Snuffles? And what was this cave? I knew what the Three Broomsticks was. An old pub, destroyed in the war. The Golden Wand had been built in it's place. I decided to go and have a look round the back, where the wreckage of the Three Broomsticks remained, still intact after centuries. Says something about ministry officials.  
  
There was nothing there, at all. I was lost, yet again. In the months following this, I re-read some of my books. It was in Memoirs Of A Lost Soul, by H Granger, that I again stumbled across 'Snuffles':  
  
It was during our third year we discovered what had really happened with the Fidelius charm. It was not Sirius Black, as was widely believed, who betrayed the Potters, but one Peter Pettigrew. After this, we formed a close friendship with Sirius, but as his innocence was not yet proven, we had to keep this fact a secret. When speaking about him, we had to call him 'Snuffles'. When he visited Harry, he stayed in a cave just outside Hogwarts. Near the Shrieking Shack, I believe..."  
  
She then goes on to recount many anecdotes and other interesting facts, all of which are right now quite irrelevant. So, yet again, I had something to look for. I knew where the Shrieking Shack was, it was famous for being the hideout of Neville Longbottom on his run from Deatheaters. In just two days, he had apparated his way from London, to Scotland, then to France, all at the age of 16, without his licence.  
  
I decided this cave would most likely be the other side of the Shrieking Shack, further away from Hogsmeade. I was proved right, or so I assumed. After twenty minutes walking, I discovered a largish cave. Making my way up, I discovered inside many things of infinite interest, including Harry Potter's personal diary, his old Firebolt, an invisibility cloak, and much much more of he and his friend's personal items, all of which are now on display at The Quirke Institute.  
  
However, I also found, in a cavity in the rock, a letter, dated the day before Draco's death, and a beautifully carved statuette. It was magical, and moved continuously. This is also on display. The letter, however, I enjoyed more.  
  
"Dear Draco, We can tell the world tomorrow, you promised me that. I know you are frightened, because of that stupid threat, but soon Nott will be dead, and you will have nothing to fear. Neither will I, of course. But just think of the Island, my lovely, where we shall be,"  
  
Were all of history's writers that bad? I think so. Oh well, I have no further clue to his mystery lover, not really. However, I *will* find the 'Island' his love so passionately describes. Maybe.  
  
~*~*~  
  
A/N God I love writing this! Oo, if you like it please review! 


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